Jonas Vingegaard proud of Sepp Kuss, battle for white jersey with Davide Piganzoli on Saturday

Jonas Vingegaard is one day closer to overall victory in the 2026 Giro d'Italia. The Danish leader of Visma | Lease a Bike stayed out of trouble thanks to the great work of his team, he tells Cycling Pro Net. He is also very happy that Sepp Kuss seized his opportunity. Team director Marc Reef emphasizes that on Saturday the focus will be on the pink jersey, but they also want to support Davide Piganzoli.

"We had planned that if a strong, large group broke away on the first climb of the day, Sepp would be among them," says Vingegaard. "That way he could also create his own chance here. And he did. I am really very happy for Sepp because it is also special to me. He has always been there for me during all my victories in grand tours. He never asks for anything for himself. I even had to encourage him today. And for him to take that chance... He really deserves it!"

Just before that, Kuss had told the Dane that he no longer expected the 31-year-old American to complete his trilogy. "And now it happened. In a way, I think his career is complete now, as well. For our team Visma | Lease a Bike this is a special day. The team has once again shown how strong we are." Among others, Bart Lemmen played a leading role. He rode the entire Passo Giau climb after Tim Rex had already done his share of the work.

Chasing white with Piganzoli?
Saturday brings the final mountain stage of this 2026 Giro d'Italia. In the finale, there are two climbs of Piancavallo (first category). There, Visma | Lease a Bike can erase the only blemish from Friday. Vingegaard lost the mountain jersey to Giulio Ciccone. "The most important thing remains to win the Giro with Jonas," emphasized team director Marc Reef. "He is in excellent shape. Our primary goal and focus are on the pink jersey. In previous editions of the Giro, Piancavallo has always caused big gaps."

"We just have to stay very sharp," Reef continued. "Hopefully, we will have another good day on Saturday. We will definitely celebrate Sepp’s victory because he has already meant so much to this team. For the rest, we want to keep our focus as much as possible on the pink jersey. Will we also go for Davide Piganzoli’s young rider classification? If the situation arises where we can support him in the fight for the white jersey, then we certainly will not hesitate."